Bank-protection device



A. C. RAGSDALE.

BANK PROTECTION DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9,1921.

Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

3SHEEISSHEET t.

A. C. RAGSDALE.

BANK PROTECTION DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9,1921.

1,43 1 J55 Patented Oct. 10, 1922?.

3 SHEETS SHEET 2.

CASHIER A. C. RAGSDALE.

BANK PROTECTION DEVICE APPLICATION FILED JULY 9.12m.

Patented Oct. 10, 1922.

3 SHEETS SHEET 3.

Patented Get. 10, 1922.

ARCHER C. RAGSDALE, 0F CREAL SPRINGS, ILLINOIS.

BANK-PROTECTION DEVICE.

Application filed July 9, 1921. Serial No. 483,439.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that AROHER C. RAGSDALE, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Creal Springs, in the county of Williamson and State of Illinois, has invented new and useful Improvements in Bank-Protection Devices, of which the following is a specification.

The object of the inventlon is to provide an apparatus for the protection of banks and like institutions particularly against the operations of daylight robbers and holdup men and others operating during business hours to defraud or rob the institut on by providing individual cages for occupation by customers doing buslness wlth the bank at the various windows and entrances to the banking floor or space and constructing these cages in such a way that while the customer is transacting business with the bank ofiicial or teller the cage is closed against exit, so that in the event that an illegal transaction should be attempted or an effort made by the occupant of the cage to hold up the oiiicer or teller, he is held against any possibility of escape, and can be released only by operation of the cage by teller or ofiicer within the banking space or room; and with these and related objects in view the invention consists in a construction and combination of parts of which a preferred embodiment is shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a plan view of an apparatus embodying the invention applied in oper ative position to a banking institution,

Figure 2 is an elevation of that portion of the structure which is located adjacent to the cashiers station.

Figure 3 is a vertical section on the plane indicated by the line 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a detail view.

Figure 5 is a vertical sectional view of one of the cages.

Figure 6 is a detail view of the means for operating the cage.

Figure 7 is a horizontal sectional viewpf the cage on the plane indicated by the llne 77 of Figure 5.

Figure 8 is aplan view of the cage.

Figure 9 is a detail elevation of the supplemental gate by which access to the presidents room is controlled.

In practice as will be obvious the general arrangements of the banking fioor may be variously modified and therefore that which is illustrated in the drawing must be regarded merely as typical in embodying a public room or space 10 separated by a screen 11 from the banking room or space 12 of which the latter may contain the vault 13 with an enclosed safe 14, the vault having double walls as shown or being otherwise safeguarded against fire, burglary and the like, file racks 15 being arranged in convenient wall spaces, and with the presidents room 16, board room 17 and safe deposit room 18 located at one end of the banking room or space together with a toilet room 19 accessible either from. the presidents room or from the general banking floor and between the presidents room and the cashiers station indicated at 20. Access from the public room or floor space to the banking room or space may be had through a secret and practically invisible door 21 normally kept locked and adapted to be opened only from the inside or by means known only to the bank ofiicials.

The tellers windows 22 and the cashiers window 23 are guarded exteriorly or within the public room or space by revoluble cages 24 of substantially cylindrical form each of which is constructed with a door or entrance opening 25 adapted to be exposed to access from the public room or space when a customer is to be admitted or given access to the tellers window and after the customer has entered the cage is turned to bring said opening 25 into registration with the tellers window in which position egress from the cage is cut off. Also located in a fixed r elation and close to the exterior surface of the cage is an arcuate shield 26 which will serve as a closure to the opening 25 if the cage is turned into the proper relation therewith to effectually confine the occupant while cutting off communication with the tellers window, so that in the event that the occupant of the cage should attempt to abstract securities or cash either by adroit movement or by any hold-up methods the turning of the cage to the closed position will efl'ectually confine him until released by the proper officers of the law. The top of the cage as shown at 27 is w pr g plerly ventilated while preventing egress. e cage may be mounted as indicated in the drawings on a track depressed below the level of the floor, the floor space or surface within the cage being stationary, with the lower edge of the wall of the cage provided with an out-turned flange or foot 28 running upon a suitable track 29 with anti-friction bearing elements to minimize the effort necessary to turn the cage, and m the construction illustrated the means for turning the latter consist of an operating shaft 30 having a gear 31 meshing with a rack on the flange or foot 28, and an operating lever 32 provided with a reversible pawl 33 for engagement with a ratchet wheel 34 geared to the shaft 30. In practice the parts of the operating mechanism should be so proportioned and related that a single movement of moderate extent in either direction of the operating lever will cause the cage to rotate from the open position in which it is adapted to admit a customer to the closed position in which the opening 25 is in registration with the tellers window and a similar movement of the lever will be sufticient to move the cage either into the permanently locked or closed position or to a position permitting the egress of the customer.

A similar cage as indicated at 35 is arranged in controlling relation with the door 36 to the presidents room 16 and in addition thereto a grated door 37 is arranged to normally close said door opening so. that the president may hold conversation with an occupant of the cage 35 without admitting him to the roomwhereas if admission is to be permitted the said door may be released by means accessible to the cashier located at the station 20 through the operation of a treadle 38 (see Figure 9) forming an element of a bell-crank lever 39 connected with a double sliding bolt 40 mounted in suitable guides 41 and having beveled terminals which allow the gate when closed to snap into locked position. The treadle is upheld b Y a spring l2 serving as a means of yieldingly holding the bolts extended in gate engaging position.

'liile the lever control actuating means for the cages will under ordinary conditions be found entirely practical and satisfactory as a means of giving access to the tellers windows, it will be understood that the same should only be regarded as typical of means adaptrd to be employed for this purpose and subject to replacement by any equivalent thereof to effect the rotation of the cage from one position to another to the end that the required operations may be controlled with the minimum of effort and loss of time i to the bank ollici'als and the customers, the essential feature being that access to the tellers windows shall be regulated in such a way as to permit of the presentation of only one customer at a time and under such conditions that in the event of any attempt at robbery or fraudulent action the occupant of the cage may be retained in confinement until apprehended by otlicials called to the assistance of the teller, to guard against the spectacular and disastrous escapes which are being effected in the daylight robberies of banks and institutions of this type and which under the present conditions can not be prevented except in rare instances by the prompt use of fire arms at the risk of injuring innocent parties who may at the time be occupants of the public room or space. I

Having described the invention, v vhat is claimed as new and useful is A protective appliance for banks and similar institutions having a revoluble cage for affording individual access to the screen opening whereby the public room or space of the institution is in communication with the banking space or room, said cage having an access opening through Which the customer may pass from the public space or room to the interior thereof, and means for rotating the cage to arrange said opening in registration with the screen opening and to further move the same to a position permitting egress from the cage, said cage having a bottomless side wall and the public room or space having a floor which is slotted to receive the lower edge of the said cage wall, and a track arranged in depressed relation with the surface of the floor and with the cage wall anti frictionally mounted thereon and movable independently of the floor space enclosed by the Wall thereof.

In testimony whereof he affixes his signature.

ARCHER C. RAGSDALE. 

